Less than two months ago, on the first anniversary of my tenure at Honolulu Civil Beat, I touched on some big dreams we have to better serve all of Hawaiʻi. I told you that we were getting started thanks to a one-year, $400,000 grant from the Google News Initiative. 

What I couldn’t tell you then was that we were in the running for another major national grant to make that dream a reality. It was a rigorous, monthslong process during which many on our staff and our board collaborated with the grantmaking team to refine our vision — and it was far from a sure thing.

This week, the good news is out: Civil Beat is now part of the American Journalism Project’s portfolio, a distinction that will fuel our expansion over the next three years with $1.5 million in funding, accompanied by coaching and training. 

As one of three newsrooms receiving new support from AJP, we join 50 other nonprofit newsrooms across the country that have benefitted from AJP’s support, ranging from the 150-year-old Salt Lake Tribune newspaper, which in 2019 became the first legacy U.S. newspaper to turn nonprofit, to the Tulsa Flyer, launched just a few weeks ago.

We all share one fundamental goal, which is AJP’s mission, too: Build a future for local news. In Hawaiʻi, that means redoubling our efforts to cover all of this state by adding more reporting power to the neighbor islands and key beats to our main newsroom focused on statewide issues. We’re calling it our “hub-and-spoke” model, enriching our news coverage for all Hawaiʻi residents by connecting the expertise of Honolulu-based reporters with the local connections of embedded journalists.

The AJP honor is a recognition not just of our work and vision but of the strong backing we receive from you, our readers — and that’s something we don’t take for granted. National funding will catalyze our growth, but local support is what will sustain it. Sarabeth Berman, CEO of the American Journalism Project, put it this way: 

“The future of local news lies in the hands of the communities who rely on it. We chose to invest in Civil Beat because of its deep commitment to serving Hawaiʻi with trustworthy, independent reporting,” Berman said. “As it expands its reach across the islands, we’re proud to support its growth, and we hope others across Hawaiʻi will join us in ensuring it continues to serve the community for years to come.”

As I mentioned in September, the perspectives of local communities will be front and center as we take these next steps, starting with the surveys we launched earlier this fall on Kauaʻi and Hawaiʻi island.

Initial highlights reinforce what we learned from a previous survey on Maui and what we’ve already heard from so many of you. Here are a few early bullet points from our partners at News Revenue Hub, who are deep in the process of analyzing the results:

• Survey respondents on both islands flagged significant gaps between what they hope to get from local news and how well local media is filling their needs, especially when it comes to helping them stay updated on local news, understanding issues around them and getting practical day-to-day advice. We want to fill some of those gaps.

• The five topics survey respondents most want more coverage on are: local politics, government and elections; agriculture/food sustainability; economy, business and cost of living; housing and development; and natural disasters. We have strong track records in all of these areas to build on.

• Trust in local news is higher than national news, which follows results of many recent media studies, with a third of respondents naming Honolulu Civil Beat as the most trusted outlet for local news about their community — the highest of any Hawaiʻi media outlet. We intend to continue to earn and grow that respect.

Diana Gerkensmeyer responded to the survey from the Puna District on Hawaiʻi island: “All the TV news is focused on Oʻahu. … The weather is always about Oʻahu,” she wrote. “Most news for Big Island is on Facebook, and through word of mouth.”

I reached out to Diana and she told me that she first came to live and surf on the islands in the 1970s, then returned 14 years ago. She thanked me for listening. And she had more to say.

“My house insurance has gone from $1,200 to $5,000 per year. The roads to Puna are a nightmare. And of course part of our (general excise) tax goes to the metro being built in Oʻahu.*?$*#,” she said in an email. “This area of the island is massively growing, with no services, so lack of news is just the tip of the iceberg.”

Expect to hear more from me in the coming weeks about what we’re learning from the survey. Then, with a full analysis in hand, we will be scheduling community listening sessions early in 2026 to discuss the nuances of what we’re hearing, what we aren’t hearing and where the accountability journalism we do best aligns with neighbor island needs. If you have thoughts about that, please shoot me an email.

In the meantime, we’ve posted the first neighbor island expansion jobs and are starting to sift through applications. We’re particularly eager to add a major gifts officer to our fundraising team to help sustain this growth beyond AJP’s three-year commitment. If you know anyone who might fit the bill, please enourage them to apply.

Thank you all for your support as we enter this new exciting phase of Civil Beat’s evolution.